Tag Archives: Taleb Rifai

MADRID, 2015-3-4 — /Travel PR News/ — UNWTO is appalled by the systematic destruction of cultural and religious artefacts in Syria and Iraq, the last of which in the Mosul Museum in Iraq. On behalf of the international tourism community, UNWTO joins UNESCO in urging immediate action to safeguard the world’s cultural heritage. “As stated… Read the full press release

MADRID, 2015-3-4 — /Travel PR News/ — Wildlife watching tourism is one of the most important tourism segments in Africa, according to new UNWTO research released on the occasion of World Wildlife Day. In view of tourism’s potential in advancing inclusive growthacross the continent, poaching and illicit trade in wildlife pose a serious threat to… Read the full press release

MADRID, 2015-3-4 — /Travel PR News/ — In his ITB 2015 opening address, UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai highlighted how new technologies are changing society and shaping the tourism sector, shifting power from governments and companies to citizens and consumers. Rifai recalled that with power comes responsibility and highlighted tourism´s capacity to overcome prejudice in an… Read the full press release

Branding and promotion, foreign direct investment, human resources development and visa facilitation were among the key topics in focus at the VI Investment and Tourism Business Forum for Africa (INVESTOUR). 16 Tourism Ministers from Africa and the Middle East and experts from different areas attended the yearly Forum, held on the occasion of the International… Read the full press release

International tourist arrivals reached 1,138 million in 2014, a 4.7% increase over the previous year, according to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer. For 2015, UNWTO forecasts international tourism to grow by 3% to 4%, further contributing to the global economic recovery. Madrid, 2015-1-27 — /Travel PR News/ — The number of international tourists (overnight… Read the full press release

A milestone resolution recognizing the contribution of sustainable tourism to poverty eradication, community development and the protection of biodiversity has been adopted by consensus by the United Nations General Assembly. New York/Madrid, 2015-1-15 — /Travel PR News/ — Emphasizing the need to optimize the economic, social, cultural and environmental benefits stemming from sustainable tourism, particularly in… Read the full press release

Sustainable development of tourism at religious heritage sites was in focus at the International Conference on Religious Heritage and Tourism: Types, trends and challenges, jointly organized by UNWTO, the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism of Spain and the City Hall of Elche (27-28 November 2014, Elche, Spain). Elche /Madrid, 2014-12-11 — /Travel PR News/ —… Read the full press release

During an official visit to Japan, UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai, highlighted the commitment of the Japanese government to the tourism sector and the positive results of tourism in the country. Mr. Rifai met the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism to discuss the strengthening of the relationship between UNWTO and Japan and inaugurated the… Read the full press release

UNWTO commends the measures taken by the Government of Romania to attract more international youth travelers through the country’s first tourism cluster dedicated to young people. MADRID, 2014-10-29 — /Travel PR News/ — The new Youth Tourism Cluster, an initiative by the Ministry of Tourism of Romania, brings together state institutions, private companies and international… Read the full press release

MADRID, 2014-9-16 — /Travel PR News/ — International tourist arrivals grew by 4.6% in the first half of 2014 according to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer. Destinations worldwide received some 517 million international tourists between January and June 2014, 22 million more than in the same period of 2013. Growth was strongest in the… Read the full press release

The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), an intergovernmental organization dedicated to supporting countries’ efforts to adopt renewable energy, and the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the United Nations specialized agency for tourism, have joined forces to promote the use of renewable energies in Islands. MADRID, 2014-9-2 — /Travel PR News/ — In a Joint Statement on Renewable Energy… Read the full press release

Madrid, 2014-7-24 — /Travel PR News/ — Disseminating tourism knowledge, enhancing the expertise on tourism and climate change and advancing sustainable tourism in Asia and the Pacific are some of the areas of cooperation agreed between the Griffith Institute for Tourism (GIFT) and UNWTO (Madrid, Spain, 21 July 2014). The cooperation agreement was signed by UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai, and the… Read the full press release

Tourism and Community Development’ is the theme of this year’s World Tourism Day (WTD). The theme underscores the potential of tourism to promote opportunities for communities around the world, as well as the role that community engagement has in advancing sustainable tourism development. The official celebrations will be hosted by Mexico in the city of… Read the full press release

Bohol/Madrid, 2014-6-3 — /Travel PR News/ — During a recent visit to the Philippines, UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai visited the Bohol province to review the recovery progress following the 2013 earthquake and deliver a recovery plan for the region’s tourism sector. The Bohol Tourism Recovery Plan is a roadmap to support the recovery of Bohol’s tourism… Read the full press release

Berlin/Madrid, 2014-03-11 — /Travel PR News/ — UNWTO, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), and African Tourism Ministers have committed toadvancing the tourism sector’s support in the global fight against the surge in poaching that is threatening one of Africa’s main tourism resources – its unique wildlife and biodiversity. (ITB Berlin, Germany, 6 March 2014). In a… Read the full press release

Madrid, Spain, 2014-2-14 — /travelprnews.com/ — The UNWTO Secretary-General concluded a 5-day trip to Australia where he met with federal and state government officials as well as main private sector associations and UNWTO Affiliate Members. During his visit, Mr. Rifai underscored the progress made by Australia in converging with UNWTO’s main policy recommendations: supporting travel facilitation, intelligent… Read the full press release

Madrid, Spain, 2014-1-20 — /travelprnews.com/ — International tourist arrivals grew by 5% in 2013, reaching a record 1,087 million arrivals, according to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer. Despite global economic challenges, international tourism results were well above expectations, with an additional 52 million international tourists travelling the world in 2013. For 2014, UNWTO forecasts 4% to… Read the full press release

Madrid, Spain, 2013-12-13 — /travelprnews.com/ — In the first nine months of 2013, international tourism grew by 5% according to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer. The number of international tourist arrivals reported by destinations around the world increased by some 41 million between January and September, growing above UNWTO’s initial forecast and creating an important stimulus to… Read the full press release

Madrid, Spain, 2013-12-07 — /travelprnews.com/ — Seventeen of Portugal´s foremost tourism associations have signed the Private Sector Commitment to the UNWTO Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, pledging to implement the ethical principles of the Code in their policies and operations. The signing took place coinciding with the 3rd UNWTO International Conference of Tourism and the Media (Estoril,… Read the full press release

UNWTO and the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) forged a new cooperation agreement consolidating efforts on sustainable tourism and the protection of natural and cultural heritage (26 November 2013, New York, USA). Madrid, Spain, 2013-11-29 — /travelprnews.com/ — Under the Memorandum of Understanding, signed by UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai and UNESCO Director General, Irina Bokova, in… Read the full press release

Madrid, Spain, 2013-11-18 — /travelprnews.com/ — The Prime Minister of Laos, Thongsing Thammavong, acknowledged tourism as central to the agenda of the government of Laos when accepting the UNWTO/WTTC Open Letter on Travel and Tourism from UNWTO Secretary-General, in support of mainstreaming the sector in the national and international agendas. Prime Minister Thammavong said, “Tourism development is… Read the full press release

London, United Kingdom, 2013-11-8 — /travelprnews.com/ — Improving air connectivity through a closer coordination of tourism and aviation policies to ensure the sustained growth of the tourism sector and of air transport was the commitment stemming from the annual UNWTO & World Travel Market (WTM) Ministers´ Summit (London, United Kingdom, 5 November 2013). Critical issues related to… Read the full press release

Bali, Indonesia, 2013-10-01 — /travelprnews.com/ — A new report by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) shows that visa facilitation could create up to 2.6 million new jobs in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies by 2016. The report was presented on the occasion of the APEC High Level Policy… Read the full press release

Madrid, 2013-09-20 — /travelprnews.com/ — The upcoming 2nd UNWTO Global Summit on City Tourism, “Innovative strategies for improving competitiveness and the development of new business models” in Moscow, capital city of the Russian Federation, (19-20 September 2013) will set the stage for the second phase of the “Cities” project initiated by UNWTO last year. Organized… Read the full press release

Madrid, 2013-09-12 — /travelprnews.com/ — UNWTO has expressed its full support to the newly created Vanilla Islands Tourism Organization as a means to reinforce tourism competitiveness in the islands of the Indian Ocean (Reunion Island, France, 10 September 2013). The concept of ‘Vanilla Islands’, defined at the beginning of August 2010 under the aegis of the Indian… Read the full press release

Madrid, 2013-08-27 — /travelprnews.com/ — International tourist arrivals grew by 5% during the first half of 2013 compared to the same period of 2012, reaching almost 500 million, according to data just released by UNWTO. Growth was above the projection made at the beginning of the year (+3% to +4%) and is also exceeding the trend of… Read the full press release

Madrid, 2013-07-17 — /travelprnews.com/ — A total of 298 million international tourists travelled worldwide between January and April 2013, 12 million more than in the same period last year according to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer. Prospects for the current tourism peak season remain positive with some 435 million tourists expected to travel abroad in the… Read the full press release

Madrid/Geneve, 2013-07-17 — /travelprnews.com/ — The developmental impact and potential of tourism was highlighted at the World Trade Organization’s Fourth Global Review of Aid for Trade in Geneva. At the meeting, UNWTO emphasized the increasingly prominent role of tourism in developing countries, particularly Least Developed Countries (LDCs), and called for increased support for tourism in international aid… Read the full press release